If it’s the Halloween spirit that you’re looking for, then the Nordic Ware Castle Bundt Pan (Sur La Table, $36.00) will deliver. You’ve got to have the treats to match the decor, and there’s nothing quite like a delicious cake that screams Halloween. Sure, you could go with the traditional cookies shaped like black cats and ghosts or maybe even pumpkin shaped cupcakes, but it’s just not the same. That’s been done before. It’s nothing new, and it’s certainly nothing exciting. But when your guests see this BOOtiful cake, they might just drop dead in awe. This cake pan showcases the intricate castle details so well that it’s hard to even tell that it’s a cake. Seriously, I think your guests will be terrified to eat it.

A few words on cake decorating: It doesn’t have to be all glamorous and perfect. I mean, their suggestions for creating bats and pumpkins is to use fondant. And if you’re reading this and don’t know what the hell fondant is, thank you. That’s my point exactly. So go with what you have on hand, what you know. Use pumpkin shaped candy corn instead of trying to create your own. Instead of spending a fortune on sprinkles for the “dirt” why not just smash up some Oreo cookies? And don’t even get me started on the sunflower seeds as cake decor…

3 out of 5 stars.

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I’m not gonna get all intellectual on you here, but I just want to touch on the science behind this for a second. The two tea lights at the base of the object give off heat, which rises to the top, and heats the angled blades above. The angled blades then use the heat energy to spin themselves. And while that’s a pretty interesting bit of science, it’s not the most interesting thing here. See, attached to the angled blades are cut outs of skeletal horsemen, which start to move by themselves. The result is shadows of eerie skeletal horsemen running in frantic circles, visible not only in the glass vase itself but also projected onto the surrounding walls. Unsettling, right? Even more so when you’re in a pitch black room and the only thing you can make out is the haunted horsemen.

While I’m a bit too old to take part in trick-or-treating (ok, really too old), I still enjoy Halloween. Even if you can’t go door to door dressed up as a mythical creature to beg free candy off your neighbors, you can still use this time as an excuse to gorge yourself on sweets. Which is exactly when I plan on doing.

5 out of 5 skeletal horsemen stars.

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One of the easiest ways you can completely freak somebody out is to mess with their senses a bit. Enter the Black Out Room Roll (Amazon, $22.99) and your unsuspecting prey will be thrust into a pitch black room. Talk about creepy! See, the mistake most people make when setting up for the holidays is that they leave the essence of their day-to-day routine out in the open. That’s not a problem for Christmas decor, but it can shatter the Halloween illusion you’re trying to create. With this 100 foot roll of plastic, you can cover up your walls entirely. Not only does this give you a blank canvas to add your decorations to, but it also is more than a little spooky. All you have to do is attach the room roll to your walls with a bit of adhesive (double-sided tape or sticky tack) and you’re ready to scare.

Last year, I has a Halloween party. I left my living room completely dark, lit only by strategically placed black lights, and suspended glow sticks from the ceiling. It was awesome.

4 out of 5 stars.

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Ok, maybe that was a little harsh. There are probably some situations in which wearing a bizarre pumpkin hat is perfectly appropriate. Just give me a minute to think of one.

…

I got it! Perhaps you’re a parent who’s trying to horrifically scare your children, and permanently damage their social lives? This hat would be perfect for that! All you’d have to do is strike when you’d have the most impact – maybe you could surprise them after school one day by picking them up. That alone would be enough to merit instant mortification from any teenager, but pop this hat on, and their social structure is toast.

See also: meeting your child’s significant other for the first time, how to get fired from your job, a night at the opera or other black tie function, pretty much any public outing

5 out of 5 embarrassed pumpkins.

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Something like the Animated Moving Books (Things You Never Knew Existed, $27.98) will keep your friends on their toes, but aren’t going to give them a heart attack. They look like just a regular set of books, like you decided to put out some Halloween decor and you decided on these books about ghost stories and spells & potions. However, there’s a trick to these books. They’re motion activated. Meaning, when your guests are looking at them from across the room, they’re just another couple of books. But when they move in to get a closer look, the books begin to slide in and out as spooky sounds play. If you’re staring directly at the books, this can be a little unnerving to see. If you’re walking past the books, this kind of thing can really play with your mind. Did that book really move? Are you seeing things? The illusion is cemented by the fact that there’s no visible wiring (the set runs on batteries) so it will truly look like the movement is happening organically.

The trick to really amazing Halloween decorations is to think of the stuff that people aren’t used to seeing. Sure, you’ve gotta go with your tried and true gravestones, bats, and ghosts, but what about thinking outside the box for a change? If someone’s looking at the “normal” Halloween fare, they’re really gonna be knocked out of their boots when you scare them out of left field. Think of these books as an introduction into unusual scare tactics.

4 out of 5 stars.

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